One win away.
That’s where South Pasadena High finds itself, on the doorstep of its first outright Rio Hondo League football championship since 1976.
A season ago, South Pasadena came close, showcasing a 9-2 overall record, including a 4-1 league mark, joining Monrovia and San Marino in sharing the league crown.
Yet, for the first time in 48 years, South Pasadena has an opportunity to win it all by itself. “We have our hopes alive as being league champs alone, and so going 5-0 would be a historical season,” said Tigers’ coach Jeff Chi, busy preparing his team to hit the road Friday night to face La Cañada, also looking to winning the title in the 7 p.m. epic battle.
A lot has changed in the world in nearly 50 years since South Pasadena last laid claim to the league’s top prize. In 1976, the Apple Computer Company was founded, “Hotel California” by the Eagles, a huge hit in the day, was released, and Jimmy Carter was elected the country’s newest president took place.
None of that matters, of course, leading up to the titanic contest between South Pasadena and La Cañada, two teams that would like nothing more than to celebrate being the league’s best when it’s all over. “Our guys are excited,” noted Chi, who would like to treat it as another important game on the schedule. “It’s important for our guys to just focus on their job and not play out of their character.”
South Pasadena comes into it with a 7-2 overall record, 4-0 in league play, and riding a five game winning streak, going back to its final non-league encounter when it knocked off Alhambra, 35-12. Since then, the Tigers have rolled to a 55-7 win over Pasadena Poly, handled rival San Marino 24-17, Monrovia 36-27 and Temple City 48-6 last week.
On the other side, La Canada is 8-1, 3-1, suffering its only defeat to the hands of Monrovia, 28-21, last Friday after rattling off eight straight victories to open the season.
Should South Pasadena come out on the short end against La Cañada, it likely will finish in a three-way tie with both the Spartans and Monrovia, all at 4-1. The Wildcats finish up against struggling Pasadena Poly, 3-6, 0-4.
In the eyes of Chi, this one feels like a heavyweight bout – two tough foes going about it to decide the best among Rio Hondo League opponents.
“We’re pretty confident in our offense, especially our running game,” said the Tigers’ coach. “Our biggest concern right now is trying to stop their passing game and their quarterback.”
Spartans sophomore signal caller Joe Bell has tossed 14 touchdowns on the season with top receiver senior Quest Swan catching nine of those, averaging 67.2 yards per game. Junior Jakob Kim, complimenting Swan, has also been a big passing target for Bell. La Canada will look to Sohan Garg, leading the team in rushing with 89.9-yard average, to get its ground game going.
“Their receivers have good speed, hands and make big plays, so we have to figure out how to stop them or at least to slow them down,” Chi explained. “We told our DBs (defensive backs), we can’t lose focus on those guys. Every play is going to be so important, so you have to be dialed in and be prepared. We can’t have mental mistakes.”
The Tigers will counter with what’s got them to this point – a powerful one-two punch in running backs Trey Freking and David Ortega, along with a stingy defense that hasn’t given up more than 28 points all season, and that one goes back to week 1 in August when they fell to Schurr of Montebello.
Freking, a junior, has carried 167 times for 1123 yards for a 6.7-yard average and 12 touchdowns, all on the ground. Ortega, a senior, has another 705 yards, on 96 carries for a 7.3 average and nine scores. Senior James Dowd, coming off a seven-catch performance against Temple City, leads the team in receiving with 22 receptions for 357 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Tigers’ sophomore quarterback Andrew Nott has been finding his way of late, navigating South Pasadena’s improving passing game, while completing 35 of 57 for 614 yards and five touchdowns.
“It will be very challenging this week, making sure our kids are focused and not taking anything for granted,” Chi emphasized. “Otherwise, those guys are going to score pretty fast.”
Against Monrovia, La Cañada trailed 21-0 at the half, and made it a game over the final two quarters, losing only by seven, 28-21, in the end. “They have the ability to score quickly, so we can’t let that happen to us,” he stressed, noting that his coaches have talked about how important Swan is to the Spartans’ offense. “Any time you’re near him, you have to put an extra eye on that kid. He can outrun the defense. He’s got great hands. I’d be surprised it he doesn’t play at the next level.”
The mentality in this one for Chi’s squad is keep doing “whatever works,” he insisted. “Every play is so important, whether it’s a pass or a run. It’s a big game for us. We just have to be ready to go.”
